Movistar+ and LaLiga secure means to force ISPs to block pirate sites

Telefónica’s streaming service Movistar+ and LaLiga have secured a Spanish court ruling that they say will oblige internet service providers to take immediate action to block pirate streaming sites.

A Barcelona commercial court ruled that the country’s main ISPs – Vodafone, Orange, MásMóvil, Digimóbil and Telefónica España – should take measures to block pirate websites on a weekly basis.

The ruling approved a measure to monitor and block over 40 illicit IPTV and card-sharing sites, with the ISPs obliged to block all sites identified as linked to pirate platforms.

The ruling follows a lawsuit initiated by Movistar+ and LaLiga to protect their content rights to LaLiga football, which called for a more immediate way to combat piracy in line with the EU’s urging of member states to implement legal measures in this area.

As a result of the ruling, LaLiga and Movistar+ will have the right to request the blocking of new domains each week within a given time period without the need to secure an additional specific court ruling. The pair said that this would enable them to act with the speed required to fight agile and dynamic pirate websites.

In making the ruling, the judge accepted that pirate websites had access to sophisticated technical resources to enable them to avoid measures taken to block them, and that it was therefore appropriate and proportionate to take additional measures.

The latest ruling comes almost a year after Telefónica’s streaming outfit secured a ruling in a Madrid court to force ISPs to take measures to block some 44 identified pirate sites.